Welcome to the 110th General Assembly! While the legislature has technically been in session for about a month and a half, business has just started to get underway over the past week. During that time, we've read through the 1400+ bills that have been filed and identified which ones have the biggest impact (positive or negative) on the labor movement as a whole. There are some pieces of legislation that may target a specific trade or industry, which we've added to various lists that we track. However, our main list of labor bills can be found byclicking here.The good news is that much of the legislation we anticipated like attacks on collective bargaining or allowing employers to opt out of workers' compensation is non-existent! However, there are plenty of other bad bills to make up for that. If you'd like to see our tracked bills on another topic (education,
elections, etc.), please let us know. Conversely, if you feel that we have missed an important piece of legislation, please bring it to our attention so that we can add it (if it is not already on another track.)

As we've done in the past, some of the major bills that we'll be watching over the course of the next week are listed below. While very few this week are true "labor" bills, we'll be keeping a close eye on them as they move through the committee process. To access all of the important information about a bill (status, text, amendments), simply click on the bill number. Remember, this is simply legislation that will be heard next week that we either are already tracking or found interesting/important. Please don't hesitate to let us know if you have questions or would like to join us at the Capitol!

There is one important note on the workers' comp bills that are listed below. The advisory council will meet this upcoming Monday, February 27th to hear any proposed legislation affecting workers' compensation. After that meeting, we will be able to provide more specific information on those bills.

Senate Bill 155 (HB 271): This bad piece of legislation prohibits state and local governments from adopting sanctuary policies.

Senate Bill 517 (HB 1040): This bill deals with the use of cell phones and other devices at polling places; prohibits voters from taking a picture of their ballot.

Senate Bill 127 (HB 54):A bad bill dealing with local control, this prohibits state and local governments from taking discriminatory action against a business based on the business's internal policies.

Senate Commerce & Labor Committee, 1:30 p.m., LP 12

Senate Bill 209 (HB 165): This is a good bill that authorizes private employers to give hiring preference to honorably discharged veterans.

Note: This bill will also be heard in the House Consumer & Human Resources Committee on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. in LP 30.

Senate Bill 261 (HB 939):As introduced, this is a workers' compensation bill that deals with the appeals process for cases. We will know more specific details after the Workers' Compensation Advisory Council meets on Monday afternoon to discuss proposed legislation.

Senate Bill 1214 (HB 325): This is another workers' compensation bill that has been introduced by the administration. Once again, we will know more specific details after Monday's meeting.

House Local Government Subcommittee, 3 p.m., LP 31

House Bill 625 (SB 512): This piece of legislation would prohibit implying that a non-incumbent candidate is an incumbent.

House Bill 184 (SB 1379): According to this bill, people who are 65 or older and do not have a birth certificate may be issued a photo ID license for voting purposes.

House Bill 858 (SB 1128): A good piece of legislation, this prohibits local governments from reducing the post-employment benefits of retired employees without the written consent of the employee.

Senate Bill 404 (HB 356): Among other things, this bill a
dds language that allows a local board of education to provide payroll deduction for dues of professional employees' organizations, but does not require an LEA to do so. This is one of our top bad bills from this year.